A.N.:For everybody who asked so nicely, here comes the beginning of the next arc. Please read and review.
A.N.2: Now reposted with less grammar and spelling errors.
Disclaimer: Because practice makes perfect, I repeat it again: I don't own Naruto.
Tokiko decided to make the trip as uncomfortable for Hana as possible. She jibed and taunted the Inuzuka on every opportunity. Hana's patience was wearing thin. Fortunately Oboro-sensei, an elderly woman who could have been long retired as a shinobi, but loved teaching genin too much, kept a tight watch on her so she didn't get to do it too often. She even threatened the girl with withdrawing her from the exams if she wouldn't control herself. That worked and she didn't bother them anymore.
They crossed the fields and meadows of River Country and entered the arid plains of Wind Country. The vegetation around them was thinning and thinning until it disappeared entirely. The endless dune sea took their collective breath away the first time they saw it.
The trek through the desert felt far longer than it really was. The heat was beating down on the team mercilessly. Hotaru was the worst of. She had recently changed her outfit, her old kimono gone, replaced by something that must have been inspired by Anko. She now wore a mesh bodysuit covering her from mid thighs to mid upper arms, her modesty being guarded only by a short dark purple top with a hood flowing freely on her back and a matching miniskirt with slits on both sides. The ensemble was completed by mesh guards of her elbows and knees and fingerless leather gloves. It offered very little protection against the sun, sand and hot winds. Tenzo finally took pity on her and lent her an off-white traveling cloak. The girl accepted it gratefully.
Otherwise nothing noteworthy happened during the trip. Finally on the fifth day of their trip they reached the entrance to the Hidden Sand.
Looking at the narrow canyon, Naruto was unimpressed. Compared to the elegant gates of Konoha, this looked simple and run down. But when they emerged on the other side, he stopped in amazement. He never saw so many huge buildings together.
"Close your mouth before sand gets into your throat, Tiny," Hana advised, but even she was impressed.
"If you're finished, we should settle into the hotel," the jounin interrupted. "And have you already forgotten what I have told you about proper behavior while visiting other shinobi villages?"
"No, sensei," the Inuzuka answered.
"Then abide by it," he ordered them. The team resumed their pace. The local inhabitants were shooting glances at them, some curious, others cold, some even hateful. Naruto wanted to ask about it, but decided to wait until they were alone.
Then one of the onlookers caught his eyes. It was a young boy of maybe his age, maybe a bit older. He was standing alone on a busy street, the passersby giving him a wide berth. Sand was swirling around him in directions defying the wind. His face was completely impassive, marked with a tattoo on his forehead, his dark-rimmed eyes were watching them from under red bangs with a strange expression. Naruto saw something in their depth, something disturbing and familiar. Before he could name it, his team moved forward and he lost sight of the strange boy. But there had been a feeling of… understanding? Acknowledgement? Kinship even? He couldn't quite name it. But he was certain that he would be seeing the redhead again.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Hotel~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They settled into their assigned room. It was large and comfortable, though sparsely furnished. They didn't mind, they didn't bring many possessions with them.
"At least this room is nice," Hotaru commented, "because the locals surely aren't."
"I barely noticed," Naruto replied.
"Their glares were quite obvious to me," Hana commented.
"It's a matter of getting used to it," the jinchuuriki shrugged.
"Sorry," the Inuzuka apologized. "What's up with the locals anyway?"
"It's not as much the villagers as their Daimyo, who isn't alright," Tenzo explained. "He cut the military expenses and Suna is suffering from it. They lost quite a lot of business to Konoha over the years. It's no wonder they're bitter about it."
"I think I've heard about it before," the Inuzuka clan heiress remarked. "I didn't pay much attention to it then."
"What does it meant to us?" the purple-haired girl inquired. "Should we worry about them throwing stones at us?"
"No," the jounin answered. "We are guests of the village. They guaranteed our safety. If they harmed us, they'd lose face and it would cost them even more lost business. Expect them to be rude and unhelpful, but not much more."
"Good," the blond said. "I really wanted to explore here."
"You might, but better not wander off alone," their sensei replied. "You never know what might happen and this is an unknown territory for you."
"That's okay," Hotaru shrugged. "I wanted to explore as well. I wonder what fashion they have in Sand," she added dreamily.
"I want to take a look around too," Hana added. "It always pays of to know your surroundings."
"Then go and enjoy yourselves. Just don't stay up too late. Tomorrow early morning we're training."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Streets of Sunagakure~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Naruto strolled through the streets of Suna alone. They had first gone out as a team, but the girls soon took off on a shopping spree and he quickly lost interest. He now wandered aimlessly, admired the huge hive-like buildings, ignored the villagers' cold stares and thought about the earlier encounter. The boy he saw just after they entered the village was occupying the forefront of his mind. He wasn't sure how, but he was certain he recognized a kindred spirit in him. He wanted to meet him again, talk to him properly, but he had no idea where to find him. He had even no idea what his name was. He considered simply asking for a while, but decided against it. If the citizens here were anything like Konoha, they wouldn't be overly eager to help.
He was almost ready to give up for the day when he nearly ran into him. For a moment they just stood there, eyeing each other curiously.
"Hello," Naruto broke the silence first. The other boy didn't answer. He just stood there motionlessly, sand swirling around him, the look in his eyes making the Konoha genin nervous. "I saw you earlier today and I thought…" the blond trailed of under the redhead's unflinching gaze. He never saw such eyes before. They were so empty and lifeless, yet there was something hiding in their depths, something Naruto couldn't quite name. Was it pain? Loneliness? Want? Something completely different? He couldn't tell. He decided to try another approach.
"I'm Naruto, what's your name?"
"Gaara," the other boy answered. Somehow it almost caused the foxy boy to jump.
"Well, pleased to meet you, Gaara," he tried to put on his best smile. It was giving him a lot of trouble today.
The native youth didn't answer, nor a single muscle moved in his face, only the sand around him swirled faster. Two Suna citizens walked around the corner and upon seeing them they disappeared where did they come from. It was making Naruto very nervous, but he wasn't ready to give up yet.
"I noticed how everybody was avoiding you," he said. "I know that. I thought that maybe we could be friends."
"Friends," the freaky child echoed in a strange tone before clutching his head in obvious pain. Naruto looked at him concernedly, his earlier fear forgotten.
"What happened," he fussed. "Can I help?"
Gaara didn't answer. Instead he whispered something Naruto didn't catch over the rustle of the whirling sand. Its speed was steadily increasing.
"What did you say?" the Leaf genin inquired. "Does it hurt? Should I take you to a doctor? I don't know where to find them here."
"Mother," the redhead whispered. Naruto looked around. He couldn't see any woman anywhere. In fact they were completely alone.
"Do you want your mother?"
The local boy stopped clutching his head and looked at him. His eyes changed. Instead of whatever it was that filled them before, they were now completely crazy. Naruto involuntarily took a step back.
"What's up with you?" he asked alarmed.
"I'm going to kill you," Gaara said like he was talking about weather. "Mother wants your blood."
"Eh?" Naruto had no idea what was up with the redhead, but he could tell things were about to get ugly. He felt something stirring within himself, he could hear the faintest whisperings telling about blood, death and destruction. He forcibly pushed them from his consciousness. The sand was now gathering between them, reminding the blond of a predator about to strike. He readied for defense.
He felt something creeping up his feet. A glance told him it was sand. A sense of danger shot through him. He mustn't allow it to climb any higher! He jumped back.
"It's useless," Gaara announced. "You can't hide from my sand."
"Just what is the matter with you?" he asked. He didn't want to fight in a foreign village with a local citizen, but he would defend himself from an attack. By the way, what would happen if they fought? Shouldn't some local authority intervene? Where were they? It seemed that somewhere else. It was only the two of them on the otherwise deserted street.
"I'm going to kill you to prove my existence," the Suna child answered in that unemotional tone of his.
"That's crazy," Naruto observed. The only answer was a wall of sand rushing at him. The Konoha genin countered it with Fuuton: Great Breakthrough. When the wind died down, he saw a protective cocoon of sand where the other boy was standing. The sand slowly crumbled away, revealing the impassive face of Gaara.
"Impressive," he said. "Mother will love your blood. You will serve well to prove my existence." The blond didn't answer. He realized words would get him nowhere. But what should he do? There was an obviously strong enemy wanting to kill him. He could try to run, but that sand-manipulating ability of his could probably stop him. Fight? He had no idea how that would turn out, he was only certain that fighting in a residential area of an allied village would land him in a world of trouble afterwards. And reasoning with a maniac was completely out of the question. The only viable option was retreat executed in such a manner that the deranged redhead wouldn't realize he was gone until he was safely out of his reach.
A number of clones sprung into existence in front of him. Gaara watched them with a crazy glint in his eyes. "More food for mother," he commented. The sand seemed to shake in excitement. The replicas rushed in for an attack and the sand rose to meet them. They crashed into an impenetrable wall and were destroyed shortly thereafter. The sand settled down to reveal only one blond Konoha genin standing on the street frozen in fear. Gaara grinned manically. Sand rose once again, enveloping the other boy in a Sand Coffin. He took a moment to savor the fear in those blue eyes.
"Sand Funeral," he said squeezing his fist. The cocoon of sand tightened, crushing its prisoner. The blond disappeared in a cloud of smoke. Gaara was startled. Did his prey just escape him? Rage filled his veins. Mother was talking to him, demanding blood. "You will get his blood, Mother," he answered. "Just wait a little. I will definitely crush him." Then he smiled. "Yes, he is strong. He will serve well to prove my existence."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~The Hotel~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Naruto moved in consecutive Shunshin, yearning to put as much distance as he could between himself and the insane redhead. Why did he ever want to talk to him in the first place? How had he ever managed to convince himself there was a sense of kinship between them? He had never seen another such whacko in his whole life. And yet, before his eyes had filled with bloodlust, even after they did, there was something disturbingly familiar about them. He wanted to know what it was, but his common sense was telling him to keep away. He decided to listen to it this time. The memories he received from the last clone had been deeply disturbing. Despite what certain people thought, he wasn't suicidal.
He opened the doors of their suite. Only Tenzo was there.
"Hello," he greeted his charge. "Where are the girls?"
"They went shopping," the genin answered. "I didn't have the patience for that."
"Ah," Tenzo nodded sagely. "Did you enjoy your trip?"
"Sort of."
"Just sort of?" The older man raised an eyebrow.
"Well," the blond ran his hand through his hair nervously, "all went well until I met that boy."
"What boy?" The Wood user inquired.
"Maybe you noticed him when we came to the village," Naruto explained. "About my age, redhead, tattoo on his forehead, circles around his eyes, everybody avoided him."
"Yes, I noticed him," Tenzo nodded, "but I didn't look at him too well. What happened?"
"I nearly bumped into him on a street," the demon vessel said. He wasn't going to admit he was actively searching for him. "I tried to talk to him, but then suddenly he went all crazy, I have no idea why. He started threatening me. In the end I had to run or he would really have tried to kill me."
"Was it really so?" the jounin asked seriously.
"Yes," the genin nodded.
"That's a serious offense," the man continued gravely. "Are there any witnesses?"
"No," the child shook his head, "the street was deserted. Two people passed by but quickly left and that was before he started doing anything. It looked like they were scared off by his mere presence."
"That's not good," Tenzo grimaced. "Now it's your word against his. We can't take any official action. Do you know who he is?"
"He said his name was Gaara," the younger ninja answered.
"I'll ask around about him," the older man promised. "In the meantime, don't go near him again."
"I won't." Naruto promised and actually meant it. "I'm not that stupid."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~The next day~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Gaara walked the streets of Sunagakure at a steady pace. Around him crowds were parting and people scattering in fear. He could crush them with his sand in an instant and they knew it. It was just right they ran from him. On another day he could have stopped to scare them some more, but not today. Today he had another prey in mind. His mother spoke to him urgently. She wanted blood. 'Yes,' he answered in his mind, 'you will get it.' Just not right now. Most people wouldn't believe if they heard it, but Gaara was actually patient. It helped him savor a good kill. And this one would be good, he was certain of that. He had already shown his strength, despite running in the end. That was nothing new to Gaara. Everybody ran from him eventually. What was new was the feeling he got from him. Somehow it didn't seem like the blond boy ran away out of fear. 'Naruto,' he repeated his name. He was a strange one indeed, even his Mother said so. He wasn't sure what made him so special, but it didn't matter. In the end, he would look just like anybody else when the sand would squeeze the life out of him.
It wasn't a problem for him to find out where the Leaf shinobi were staying for the Exams. He stood behind the corner and watched the hotel entrance intently. People passed in and out, but they weren't of interest to him. Then there, the boy who dared to speak to him about friendship finally appeared. He was accompanied by what seemed to be his team, a male jounin, two kunoichi clearly older than him and three grey dogs. He followed them at a safe distance. They were headed for the training grounds. He watched them begin their training routines. 'Yes, Naruto,' he thought, 'show me just how strong you are. Show me just how tasty a meal for Mother your blood would make. Show me how well you can prove my existence.' He settled down to wait and observe.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Training grounds~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"That's enough for today," Tenzo announced. The team sighed in relief. The training had been tougher then ever, not because of the distance they had to run, number of push-ups and sit-ups and squats or intensity of their spars, but because of the unbearable heat, dry and dusty air and unrelenting sunrays trying to fry them alive. They never needed so many breaks to take a drink during a session before. But then the whole point of this exercise was to get them accustomed to local climate before the Exams started.
"I can't wait to get back to the hotel," Hotaru remarked. "I just want to soak in a cold bath for hours. Too bad they don't have a bathtub here."
"Just what would you expect in the middle of a desert?" Hana commented. She was kneeling next to her dogs, which were lying on the ground bonelessly, their tongues sticking far out of their mouths, their breathing fast and heavy. "Poor Haimaru, they have it the worst out of us all."
"That's because they're wearing fur coats," Naruto said.
"It's not like they can help it," the Inuzuka replied. "Not like us," she pointed to the pile of discarded clothes. Everybody who could get rid of a garment while keeping basic modesty had done so. They waited for a while to cool off before putting their clothes back on. Before they could head back to the hotel, a figure appeared near the edge of the training grounds.
"Gaara," Naruto recognized him instantly.
"The whacko you told us about yesterday?" Hana asked.
"Yes," he confirmed. For a minute they just stood there, watching each other warily. Then the short redhead started slowly walking towards them. He stopped about ten steps away, not saying a word.
"Hello," Tenzo greeted him politely. The boy didn't outwardly react. It seemed he didn't even hear him. He was just staring at Naruto intently.
"Hello, Gaara," the blond said.
"Naruto," the tattooed youth replied. "Would you prove my existence?"
"What?!" The shout came from Hotaru.
"I'm not talking to you," the deranged youth stated calmly.
"Why, you little…" the girl narrowed her eyes.
"Calm down, Hotaru," Naruto suggested.
"He's rude," she replied. "Should I just let him get away with it?"
"We're guests here," Tenzo reminded her. "We mustn't cause any trouble here."
"It doesn't matter," Gaara said. "Mother wants his blood."
"You have a strange mother if she drinks blood," Naruto couldn't stop himself from remarking. The boy in front of him still gave him the creeps, but with his whole team backing him he wasn't scared anymore.
"Mother is Mother," the Suna boy replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world. For him it probably was.
"Figures," the blond muttered.
"Mother is interested in you," Gaara added. "She likes you."
"And yet she wants you to kill me?" Naruto raised an eyebrow.
"Yes," the redhead nodded slightly.
"What kind of twisted logic is this?" Naruto inquired.
"I don't think there's any kind of logic," Hana commented.
"I'm not talking to you," the insane child said.
"Look boy," Tenzo intervened, "I don't know who you are or what do you want, but you shouldn't threaten my students. Understand?"
"Shut up or I'll kill you," the local boy stated. "In fact, I think I'll kill you anyway. Mother always wants blood."
"You shouldn't threaten guests of your village," the jounin suggested. "It would get you in trouble."
"I don't care," the psychotic youth answered flatly. "Mother wants your blood."
"And where is your mother?" The jounin asked.
"Here." There was nobody close by. The Konoha team took it as another proof of his insanity. They all came to the realization that reasoning will get them nowhere. But what else could they do? It wasn't like they could just attack a member of the host village. If he attacked first, they could of course defend, but without unbiased witnesses, they could still get blamed for it. All in all, it was a very unpleasant situation.
Before anything else could happen, a new person entered the area. It was a tall man in Suna jounin uniform with fang-like marks on the half of his face that wasn't covered by a headcloth.
"Gaara," he called.
"Baki," the youth spoke. "What are you doing here?"
"Gaara, what are you doing?" the man continued. "Your father would be angry with you if you kill any foreign shinobi."
"I don't care." His voice left no doubt that he indeed didn't.
"You are going to be in a lot of trouble when Kazekage-sama finds out you have been threatening our guests," Baki elaborated.
"I don't care," the disturbed redhead repeated. "Neither about that nor about him."
"Gaara," the Suna jounin scowled, "stop it this instant and go home."
The tattooed youth seemed to consider it for a moment. "I will kill you another day," he said and left.
"I apologize for him," said Baki humbly. "He is wild and untamed and we can barely control him."
"No kidding," Hotaru muttered.
"Nothing happened," Tenzo replied, "yet. Can you please make sure he won't be bothering us again?"
"I'll see to it," the Sand shinobi promised.
"I consider the matter settled then," the Konoha jounin stated.
"Thank you," Baki bowed. "I wish you to have a pleasant stay in Sunagakure." He then left to take care of his difficult charge.
"What the heck was that?" Hotaru asked when he got out of sight.
"I'm not sure," Tenzo replied, "but from now no wandering around alone."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Kazekage's office~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Gaara listened impassively as the man who dared call himself his father ranted and raved. He would have once cowered before his rage, but now it didn't even faze him anymore. He wasn't a scared little child, hadn't been for over three years now. Yashamaru had cured him of it thoroughly. He wondered idly, what would happen if he tried to kill the one lecturing him. Mother would sure like his blood. But he wasn't certain he could take on the Kazekage. That man was strong, he had earned the hat through his strength and accomplishments in the last Great Shinobi War. 'Not yet,' he decided. But once sure. Once he's older and stronger, he would crush him like the rat the man was.
The leader of Sunagakure finally finished his rant. Gaara looked indifferent. He wasn't exactly bored, sleepless nights taught him how to deal with that, it would be better to say he was annoyed. It was always the same old song how Gaara was too wild and dangerous for his own village and how he should finally learn to behave. Then he was finally dismissed. Nobody detained him, they knew that trying to lock him up would do them little good. He wondered whether there would be another assassin tonight. He would welcome it. Mother was angry she was denied her meal today and the sacrifice would console her.
He caught a movement out of the corner of his eye. Somebody jumped from roof to roof trying to remain unobserved. His outward expression remained unchanged, but inwardly he smiled. It looked like tonight's mother's snack was already on his way. He slowly returned home and waited.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Training grounds~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
They had heeded their sensei's warning, but it wasn't enough. When the pair of them stood on the abandoned plain alone with the murderous redhead, they realized how inadequate the 'safety measures' had been. Hotaru had forgotten something after the training and he had volunteered to go with her to pick it. That was when Gaara appeared again. They had trusted the Suna shinobi to handle him, but even that had proven foolish in the end. The psycho probably couldn't be controlled at all. So now they stood in the middle of a large sandy plateau that passed as training grounds in Suna, watching the sand swirl around the creepy boy, all too aware of every grain of sand lying under their feet and floating in the air around them. Not one person was in sight. They weren't expected to return soon. They couldn't count on outside help.
Gaara slowly walked closer to them. A thought of running passed through their minds, but the crazy youth was between them and the village. They stood their ground, all the while feeling like rabbits watching an approaching wolf.
"So, Naruto," Gaara started, "are you prepared to confirm my existence?" Sand whirled wildly around him.
The blond tried not to flinch. The empty green eyes caused him to feel chills even in the hot desert sun. He wanted just to bolt and run. Something in his mind growled. He recognized it as the Kyuubi no Kitsune. It was the first time he took comfort from the demon. He had the power of the greatest of Bijuu sealed within him and partially accessible for his use. If worst came to worst, he could somehow use it, like in the fight with the bone monster. He suddenly felt much better. He was however aware that fighting a sand user in the desert put him at a disadvantage and wanted to avoid a battle for as long as possible.
"Why are you doing this?" he asked. Maybe if he could hold the conversation long enough, somebody would come. He just wasn't too sure what they would be able to accomplish.
"To prove my existence," Gaara repeated.
"You already said so. How does it work?" the blond inquired.
"By killing you I confirm my existence." He said it like it made perfect sense.
"I don't understand. Everybody can see you exist. I can see it, she can see it," he pointed to trembling Hotaru, "people in the village can see it, why do you need to kill somebody to prove it?"
"Because I was created as a weapon," the redhead explained. "If I can't kill, my existence will disappear."
Warning bells sounded in Naruto's mind. Could it be? After the Old Man had first explained him about the Kyuubi, he had asked whether there were others like him. He had learned that indeed there were others, but not much was known about them. Every village kept such secrets under tight guard. He had sometimes wondered what it would be like to meet another of his kind. He had certainly never imagined somebody like Gaara. What had happened to him to make him that way? Could he have ended just like him? Enough, he told himself. He didn't even know whether the other boy was indeed a jinchuuriki so any speculations were idle.
"He is," sounded in his mind. It was so faint he barely heard it, but he could understand it perfectly. So the Fox knew something? He guessed he shouldn't be surprised. He decided to continue his play for time and hope that the Nine-tails would volunteer some more information, like what demon he was dealing with.
"What kind of weapon you are?" he asked even though he already knew the answer. Who knows, he might even learn something new.
"When I was born, my father, the Kazekage, ordered a sand spirit, Shukaku, sealed into me." Gaara didn't know why he was telling the foreigners this. It did them no good, he would kill them anyway. Maybe it just felt good to talk to someone once I a while. And it wasn't like it mattered what he told them, they would be dead soon enough. "He had the woman who gave birth to me killed in the process. He wanted me to be the strongest shinobi, the ultimate weapon to be unleashed at his enemies. But the war has ended. There were no enemies for me to crush. I became unnecessary. Dangerous, they said. They tried to forgot I existed and why. My own father tried to get rid of me."
"Get rid of you?" Naruto asked. Surely that couldn't mean…
"He sent the first assassin when I was six," Gaara confirmed Naruto's worst suspicion. "It was my uncle and caretaker Yashamaru. I killed him. Since then I killed everybody who came at me to confirm my existence. And now I'll kill you and that girl to confirm my existence further." The sand swirled faster.
"Forget it," said Naruto forcefully. Gaara just stood there, readying his sand for an attack. "I will not allow you to kill either myself or Hotaru and I suggest you find another way of confirming your existence. Have you ever considered making friends? I could help."
Naruto didn't know what reaction to expect from the psychotic youth, but it certainly wasn't the one he got. Just like during their first encounter he started clutching his head and whispering about 'mother.' 'Not good,' realized the blond. 'He's going to attack soon.'
"Hotaru, run," he whispered to his teammate.
"What?" she looked at him uncomprehending. "I can't leave you alone with him. You know what sensei said."
"I know and I know what we're dealing with. Just run, this is above your level." When she still didn't move, he added: "Please trust me and go." Something in his voice convinced her. She nodded and starting slowly backing away.
"You're going nowhere," Gaara suddenly roared. He wasn't clutching his head in pain anymore, instead he was grinning manically. "Mother wants your blood." He threw his arm forward. Sand rose from the ground trapping the retreating girl in its unyielding grip.
"Let her go," Naruto snarled. His veins were slowly filling with the familiar red heat. He didn't resist. If he really stood against another jinchuuriki, he would need the power.
"What if I don't?" the Suna boy taunted.
"You don't want to find out," the blond said threateningly.
"Show me," the tattooed youth said. He tightened his fist a bit. Hotaru shrieked. Naruto saw red.
"Nobody gets away with threatening my friends."
"Friends?" Gaara laughed. "Friends are nothing, you fool."
"No," the Konoha genin shook his head, "you are the fool."
"Prove it."
"I'm going to."
The end for now.
Next time: Gaara x Naruto